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Kirsten
Mariette was the guardian of the Sister of the North and a minion of the Shadow Lord. She was also the older sister of Mariette of Shadowgate. Synopsis History Kirsten lived in the small town of Shadowgate in the Dread Gnome territory, the northernmost town in Deltora, with her younger sister, Mariette. At some point in the past, Kirsten lost her heart to Bede, a young musician in the travelling performer troupe known as the Masked Ones. When Bede left her, as he had done many times before with other young women, Kirsten was so overcome with heartache and grief that she fled into the surrounding mountains and was never seen by the townspeople again. This event caused the people of Shadowgate to hate the Masked Ones. While in the mountains, Kirsten's jealousy and hatred over Bede attracted the attention of the Shadow Lord, and he eventually made her the guardian of the Sister of the North, gifting her with immense magical powers. Seven years before the events of Shadowgate, Kirsten guided Bede and Mariette through the mountains to her castle and offered Bede the chance to cast her sister aside for her. When Bede refused and remained loyal to Mariette, Kirsten imprisoned them both. ''Shadowgate Kirsten's presence was unknowingly first manifested as a mysterious phantom wearing a mask, which strangled Otto of the Masked Ones, mistaking him for the nearby Lief, Barda, and Jasmine. As a result of this, the group met and briefly joined the Masked Ones to travel. Kirsten herself was first mentioned by Bess, the leader of the Masked Ones and Bede's mother, who was telling Lief about her son's disappearance. She had brought up Kirsten to Bede in an unsuccessful attempt to convince her son that his love for Mariette was nothing special, and Lief was taken aback by how little concern Bess had over Kirsten's fate. Almost immediately after Bess told this to Lief, the masked phantom appeared again, this time to mortally wound a "bareface hanger-on" seamstress, Fern. Fern managed to tell Lief with her dying breaths that he must beware "the Masked One" and that she was afraid. Lief and his friends later learn that Fern had been searching through their things. Lief eventually reached the conclusion that Bede was the guardian of the Sister of the North and the controller of the masked phantom that had been stalking them; "The Masked One". He thought briefly of Kirsten and Mariette again, as he, Barda, and Jasmine passed Shadowgate, and pitied their parents. Kirsten first appeared in person when she answered the door of the castle near Shadowgate, dressed in simple clothing and masquerading as Bede's servant. Lief initially mistook her for Mariette, and was suprised when she introduced herself. Kirsten timidly led Lief, Barda, and Jasmine to where Bede was playing and writing his music, and habitually touched a locket around her neck whenever he stopped. When Bede began to sing his newest song, Kirsten began to cry; the song's lyrics were about her and Bede's love. Lief, Barda, and Jasmine quietly expressed their disgust for the poorly written and cruel lyrics before Kirsten began to take them to a bedchamber. However, at the last moment, Lief recognized the last word of each of Bede's lyrics as part of a secret message; "Kirsten is evil. I am her prisoner. Help me." Lief warned his friends of Kirsten's treachery and alerted Bede that he understood before pushing Kirsten aside, making sure to take her locket. Barda released Bede, but Jasmine was unable to harm Kirsten before she summoned the guise of the Masked One and slowly pursued them through her castle. Eventually, she used her magic to capture Barda, Bede, and Jasmine and cornered Lief near the Sister of the North, in a snake pit. Lief distracted Kirsten by reminding her of Bede, how she could not win his love, and that she kept him alive because his music reminded her of her own humanity. Furious, Kirsten eventually dropped the guise of the Masked One and leaned over the pit. Before Lief could react, several snakes snatched Kirsten's long, braided hair and pulled her down, biting her repeatedly. Lief looked away, horrified and protected by the Belt of Deltora, and thought that the snakes' poison would make Kirsten die slowly. She eventually perished along with the Sister she guarded, and after her death her magic was undone. Her castle faded into dust and Jasmine, Barda, Bede, and Mariette - whom Kirsten had trapped inside her locket - were all freed. Appearance Kirsten was described as being beautiful by several characters, including Lief. By the time of ''Shadowgate, Kirsten dressed in a long, white robe and wore Mariette's gold locket on a delicate chain around her neck. Her hair was thick, bright yellow, and tied into a braid with golden thread. Her hair was well beyond waist-length and hung over one shoulder. Her feet were small and she did not wear shoes. Kirsten took on the guise of the Masked One several times. The Masked One was a nearly formless phantom that wore a massive, billowing black cloak and an expresionless, gleaming, emerald green mask. The eyes behind the mask were described as "burning" and gave off light. Its hands were thin, long, and completely featureless - sporting no fingernails or creases. They were an unnatural white color. The Masked One's movements, specifically the way its hands moved, were frequently described as being snakelike and slow. On the cover of Shadowgate, the Masked One's cloak appears to be dark green on the outside and crimson on the inside with gold lining. Personality Kirsten was extremely proud and vain, traits that led to her allegiance with the Shadow Lord. She was completely unable to accept that Bede loved her sister over her, believing herself to be superior in every way. This immense jealousy eventually turned into a lust for power that Kirsten exericsed by making Bede her slave and Mariette her captive. She later expressed a desire to rule the entire north of Deltora. Contrasting her obsessive and complex feelings for Bede, Kirsten barely showed anything more than scorn for her little sister, and was completely willing to kill innocent people and her own underlings. Kirsten's interactions with the Masked Ones appear to have influenced her greatly. Her relationship with Bede is the most notable, and is her greatest flaw. Any mention of Bede rejecting her enraged Kirsten, which ultimately led to her death, while the mention or sound of his music was her last tie to her humanity. Kirsten shed tears at Bede's hastily written love song, though they may or may not have been sincere. A more direct reflection of the Masked Ones' influence was Kirsten's dark, masked phantom, which she named "the Masked One". Abilities Kirsten was given exceptional magical powers by the Shadow Lord. The most notable product of her magic was the phantom she called "The Masked One", which she was able to control at a distance or cloak herself in. The Masked One was able to move with almost complete silence, fade into the shadows, and was unnaturally strong, able to lift Otto above the ground. Its hands burned and seared anything they touched, and this is what its victims would die of, rather than suffocation or a broken neck. Kirsten was apparently not able to control the Masked One as effectively at long distances, and had it lash out at anyone near where she believed Lief, Barda, and Jasmine were. Kirsten herself had a certain amount of magical protection that kept her safe from simple knife wounds, but she could not defend against hundreds of poisonous snake bites. She could summon countless small, winged creatures from her mouth by screaming, which could bit and sting. Her powers were also closely tied to her massive castle in the mountains. Kirsten was able to cause the walls of her castle to lose their solidity and swallow up people by touching them, and the castle was apparently maintained by her magic; it faded into dust once she died. Kirsten was also able to enchant Mariette's locket and trap her sister inside it for several years. She could also exercise a degree of control and influence on people outside her castle; she guided Bede and Mariette through the mountains to her palace, and was given authority over Laughing Jack and other weaker servants of the Shadow Lord. Quotes *''Do not approach him! Kneel! Kneel, I beg you!'' *''Yes, my lord! Oh, but do not stop playing! Your music is so sweet!'' *''Ah, you have finished the words of a new song, I see! Is it your song for today? The one I am to copy into the book?'' *''Sing, my lord! We will follow the words most carefully.'' *'' My lord? Your guests are tired and wish to rest, my lord. May I take them to a bedchamber?'' *''So now I have you, King of Deltora. I have succeeded where others have failed. The Master has already rewarded me richly. Now I will have power beyond my wildest dreams.'' *''I am the Masked One. Nothing can stand against me. Soon I will bend the whole of the north to my will.'' *''Even when Bede saw the wonder I had become in the year of my exile - even when I offered him a place by my side - he recoiled from me! He deserved to die.'' *''His songs entertained me.''